Cyclodextrin and cellulose combination product developed by click chemistry: fascinating design for inclusion of ciprofloxacin

Abstract In the current study, we introduce “click chemistry” as a powerful tool to tailor cyclodextrin–cellulose combination product followed by the inclusion of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride (CipHCl) as antibacterial agent. Initially, beta-cyclodextrin (β-CD) and cellulose fibers (CFs) were modified so as to be mono-6-propargylamino-6-deoxy-β-CD (Pro-β-CD) and azidated cellulose fibers (CFs-N 3 ), respectively. Afterward, the “click reaction” was carried out between Pro-β-CD and CFs-N 3 to fabricate a covalent grafting of β-CD onto CFs resulting in click product (CFs-N 3 @Pro-β-CD). The drug-delivery kinetics of the loaded CipHCl was performed by immersing samples into an aqueous solution, and the amount of adsorbed and released CipHCl was measured, as a function of time, by UV spectroscopy. Compared to original CFs, the load quantity of CipHCl into the click product was greatly increased, the release time of CipHCl from CFs-N 3 @Pro-β-CD was prolonged, and considerably higher antibacterial activity against E. coli and S. aureus was observed. The click product exhibited excellent antibacterial activity and sustained antibacterial efficacy up to 12 and 10 days against S. aureus and E. coli . The results showed that β-CD has been successfully grafted onto CFs via covalent bonds, while maintaining the intrinsic properties and the integrity of the fibers. Compared with the control paper sheet, the mechanical properties of the paper are well preserved. Graphic abstract